Senior Sport Fixture vs Gill College – Results

We were pleased to welcome Gill‘s senior sports teams to Union High School this afternoon for a valuable mid-week fixture.

๐˜ž๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ญ๐˜ด ๐˜ซ๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ, ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ฑ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ท๐˜ช๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ต๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜บ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฑ๐˜ญ๐˜ข๐˜บ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜จ๐˜ข๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ฒ๐˜ถ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜บ ๐˜จ๐˜ข๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ถ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ถ๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ถ๐˜ฎ.

The U14A rugby side and the 1st XV both recorded convincing 33-7 victories, while the 2nd XV secured an impressive 43-3 win. The U15A and U16A teams fought hard but went down 26-2 and 32-25 respectively.

๐—ข๐—ป ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ต๐—ผ๐—ฐ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—ณ๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ฑ, our U16B girls rose to the challenge of taking on Gill College’s U16A side, earning a well-deserved 3-1 victory, while our 2nd team produced an excellent performance to defeat Gill’s 1st team 5-0.

๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ธ ๐˜†๐—ผ๐˜‚ ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—š๐—ถ๐—น๐—น ๐—–๐—ผ๐—น๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ด๐—ฒ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐—บ๐—ฎ๐—ธ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐˜๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฝ ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—š๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ฎ๐—ณ๐—ณ-๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐˜ and we wish them every success for the remainder of the season.

1st xv Rugby Match Report: Gill College vs Union High School

Coming off a hard-fought clash against Westering High School just days earlier, the boys stepped into a demanding midweek fixture against Gill College. Despite the short turnaround, they showed grit and determination from the first whistle.

A thunderous opening tackle by Qhama Solomon and Elvandre Meyer immediately set the tone, signaling to the opposition that we meant business. Our defensive line was relentless, forcing Gill into rushed kicks and errors that we capitalized on with sharp attacking play and well-deserved tries.

The first 20 minutes were fierce, but costly mistakes in kicking and lineout execution gave Gill College brief momentum. As intensity dipped, the opposition found glimmers of hope. However, a regroup at halftime reignited our drive. The second half showcased precision kicking, powerful mauls gaining meters, and clinical finishing with team tries that reflected our collective effort.

The impact from the bench was immense, adding fresh energy and sealing a convincing 33โ€“7 victory. This win carried special significance as it marked the final home game for our Grade 12 players โ€” a farewell delivered in impeccable style.

Looking ahead, Interschools now awaits. Fine-tuning and strategic planning will be crucial, but back-to-back victories have instilled confidence and belief in what this team is capable of. With patience, clear thinking, and calm execution, the gentlemen are well-positioned to rise to the challenge.

Junior Sport vs Gill Primary – Results

The Primary Department enjoyed another successful round of fixtures, with both our hockey and rugby teams producing excellent performances.

Hockey continued its outstanding form, with both teams securing convincing victories:
U/13A won 11โ€“0
U/13B won 5โ€“1

Rugby also had a positive afternoon, winning three of their four matches:

U/11A won 32โ€“0
U/11B won 56โ€“5
U/13A won 21โ€“5
U/13B lost 5โ€“42

Congratulations to all our players and coaches on their hard work, determination, and sportsmanship. These performances provide great momentum as we now look forward to building towards Interschools and finishing the season strongly.

Rugby vs Westering – Results

Union High School welcomed Westering High School to Graaff-Reinet this past Saturday for a full day of rugby and hockey fixtures, marking an exciting return to sport after the winter break.

The matches were played in great spirit, with both schools competing hard throughout the day.

Our rugby teams enjoyed a successful outing, recording victories in four of the five fixtures.

The U14A side got the day off to an excellent start with a 28-5 win, while the U15A team fought hard before going down 12-19. The U16A side responded with a convincing 21-10 victory, followed by another strong performance from the 2nd XV, who claimed a 33-13 win.

The 1st XV rounded off the afternoon in style with an impressive 35-17 victory over a physical Westering outfit, with Calum Jacobs named Man of the Match.

1st XV Report

Despite the strong start from Westering, Union remained composed and struck back with two quick tries. A few basic errors allowed the opposition back into the match, making for a closely contested first half.

At the break, the boys stayed calm and focused. With a few simple adjustments to both their defensive and attacking structures, Union found their rhythm. Sustained, clinical pressure throughout the second half saw Union dominate proceedings, ultimately securing a well-deserved 35โ€“17 victory.

It was an excellent start to the termโ€™s rugby season, with the team showing resilience, composure, and determination.
Well done to every player who wore the green and white with pride today.

๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฌ ๐˜บ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ข๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด, ๐˜ด๐˜ถ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ต ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ง๐˜ง, ๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ž๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜๐˜ช๐˜จ๐˜ฉ ๐˜š๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ญ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ฌ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฑ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜Ž๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜ข๐˜ง๐˜ง-๐˜™๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ต.

Senior Hockey vs Westering – Results

The hockey teams faced a strong Westering side and, despite producing determined performances, were unable to come away with victories on this occasion.

The U14A side went down 0-2, the U16A team lost 0-7, the U16B side finished 0-4, and the 2nd team were narrowly beaten 1-3.

While the results did not go Union’s way, the teams showed resilience and commitment, providing a solid platform to build on.

1st Hockey Team – Cape Town International Hockey Tournament

Union High School’s 1st Girls’ Hockey Team returned from their first-ever Cape Town International Hockey Tournament with a silver medal and a performance that made the entire school proud.

Travelling to Cape Town, there was a mixture of excitement, nerves and uncertainty. The team knew they would be competing against some of the strongest hockey schools in the country, but from the very first whistle, they showed that they had not travelled to simply participate โ€“ they had come to compete.

Their tournament began against Hoรซrskool Hugenote. After the holiday break, there were understandable questions about how quickly the team would settle into their rhythm. Those doubts disappeared almost immediately as the girls produced a composed and disciplined performance to record a 2โ€“0 victory.

Confidence continued to grow in the second pool match against Curro Hermanus. The team produced an outstanding display of attacking hockey, securing an impressive 7โ€“0 victory.

The final pool match against Edgemead would determine who finished top of the group. With everything to play for, the girls displayed maturity, patience and discipline, capitalising on their opportunities to earn a convincing 4โ€“0 victory. They finished the pool stage unbeaten, with three wins from three matches, nine points and 13 goals scored.

The cross-pool playoff against Swartland High School presented a different challenge. While it was not the team’s most polished performance, they showed tremendous character, fighting for every ball and trusting one another to secure a hard-fought 2โ€“1 victory. Their determination when momentum was not in their favour proved to be one of the defining moments of the tournament.

The semi-final against Hoรซrskool Stellenbosch demanded everything from the team. Stellenbosch applied relentless pressure from the outset, but Union remained calm, trusted their game plan and patiently absorbed the pressure. Their opportunity came early in the second half when they scored the only goal of the match. A late penalty stroke awarded to Stellenbosch threatened to change the outcome, but the goal was disallowed, and the final whistle confirmed Union’s place in the tournament final.

Reaching the final against Punt High School was already a remarkable achievement. Unfortunately, the match was decided by an early penalty stroke, that proved decisive. Despite the setback, the girls never stopped fighting. They played with courage, determination and tremendous heart until the final whistle. Although they were unable to find the equaliser, they left everything on the field and finished as deserving silver medallists.

While the silver medal may have been disappointing immediately after the final, it represents an outstanding achievement. In their very first appearance at one of South Africa’s premier school hockey tournaments, Union reached the final and earned the respect of every team they faced.

The team is thanked for believing in one another, trusting the process and wearing the Union High School badge with pride, humility and passion throughout the week. They represented the school with distinction both on and off the field and showcased exactly what Union hockey stands for.

This silver medal is not the end of the story, but rather the beginning of what promises to be an exciting future as the team now turns its attention to the 2026 Interschools.

National Mixed Martial Arts Championship – Results

The following students participated in the National Mixed Martial Arts Championship in Pretoria from 26 June 2026 to 28 June 2026, representing the Eastern Cape and achieving medals in multiple categories, which will represent South Africa in the upcoming tournaments:

Sinead Christoffelsย 
Points: Silver
Weapons: Gold

Chloe-Anneย  Fourie
Grappling: Silver
Points Fighting: Silver
Continuous Fighting: Silver
Weapons: Silver

Matthew Christoffelsย 
Grappling:Gold
Points Fighting: Silver

Elizabeth Fourie
Points Fighting: Bronze
Weapons: Bronze

Grace Kitching
Low Kick: Gold
Grappling: Gold
Points Fighting: Gold
Weapons Sparing: Gold
Continuous Fighting: Silver

Jacquilin Ahmad
Points:ย  Gold
Grappling: Gold
Weapons:ย  Gold

Junior Sport vs Woodridge – Results

Union Schools enjoyed a competitive day of rugby and hockey against Woodridge, with our learners showing great determination and sportsmanship throughout the fixtures.

Rugby Results
U/11B: Lost 5โ€“17
U/11A: Lost 7โ€“10
U/13B: Lost 0โ€“36
U/13A: Lost 19โ€“40

Hockey Results
U/11A: Won 13โ€“0
U/11B: Drew 1โ€“1
U/13C: Lost 0โ€“1
U/13B: Drew 0โ€“0
U/13A: Drew 1โ€“1

Well done to all our players and coaches for their effort and commitment. We are proud of the character shown by every team.

Anne Beagley Junior Rugby & Hockey Festival – Results

As we come to the end of this year’s ๐—”๐—ป๐—ป๐—ฒ ๐—•๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ด๐—น๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐—ฅ๐˜‚๐—ด๐—ฏ๐˜† & ๐—›๐—ผ๐—ฐ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—™๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฎ๐—น, we’d like to pause for a moment to acknowledge the invaluable support of our festival’s anchor sponsor, Astron Energy Eastern Cape, together with our local fuel sponsors, Astron Energy Graaff-Reinet (Astron Energy College Motors), represented by Stephan and Jeanri de Souza, and Astron Energy Bothas Market Square (Bothaโ€™s Garage), represented by Johan and Michaela Smit.

๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ณ ๐˜จ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ด ๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ต๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฑ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ด ๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ด๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ช๐˜ข๐˜ญ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฐ๐˜ด๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ฃ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ค๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ญ๐˜บ ๐˜จ๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ง๐˜ถ๐˜ญ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ณ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ถ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ด๐˜ถ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ต ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด, ๐˜ด๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ญ๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ง๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ท๐˜ข๐˜ญ.

Every year, when the final whistle has blown and the fields begin to quieten, we’re reminded that the ๐—”๐—ป๐—ป๐—ฒ ๐—•๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ด๐—น๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐—ฅ๐˜‚๐—ด๐—ฏ๐˜† & ๐—›๐—ผ๐—ฐ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—™๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฎ๐—น has never been only about rugby and hockey.

๐˜ž๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฐ๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฎ๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜บ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜จ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ๐˜ด ๐˜ด๐˜ฐ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜ญ๐˜ญ๐˜บ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ.

For a few short days, our boarding houses become home to visiting teams, meals are shared around the same tables, conversations about the day’s matches turn into laughter and new friendships and ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ถ๐—น๐—ฑ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ป ๐˜„๐—ต๐—ผ ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐—ฎ๐˜€ ๐˜€๐˜๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ด๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜€ ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—ธ๐—ป๐—ผ๐˜„๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ณ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ณ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐—บ ๐˜€๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ผ๐—ผ๐—น๐˜€ ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜€๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ฝ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜ƒ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—ฒ.

Coaches catch up over the festival’s traditional braai and steak evenings, parents give so generously of their time to help host the event and every person who walks onto our campus becomes part of something bigger than themselves. ๐—œ๐˜ ๐—ถ๐˜€ ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ๐˜€๐—ฒ ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ฑ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐˜†, ๐˜€๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐—บ๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—น ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐˜ ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ณ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—ถ๐˜€ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ฑ.

As the messages begin to fill our festival WhatsApp group – one by one letting us know that everyone has arrived home safely – we’re reminded how privileged we are to have shared this weekend with each of you.

๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ธ ๐˜†๐—ผ๐˜‚ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐˜๐—ฟ๐˜‚๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜‚๐˜€ ๐˜„๐—ถ๐˜๐—ต ๐˜†๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ถ๐—น๐—ฑ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ป, for embracing the spirit of the festival and for helping create an atmosphere that is warm, welcoming and genuinely special.

Results

Union High School enjoyed a highly successful Anne Beagley Junior Festival, with outstanding performances across both hockey and rugby.

The U/13A Hockey team had an exceptional tournament, remaining unbeaten in seven matches and recording impressive victories against Cambridge (3-0), Charlo (7-0), DSG (2-0), the Invitational Team (7-0), Cradock (3-0), Stirling (1-0) and Clarendon (8-0), while drawing 1-1 against Sonop.

The U/13B Hockey team showed tremendous commitment and growth throughout the festival. Their results included victories over Crewe (4-1 and 1-0) and Riebeek (3-1), a goalless draw against Gonubie, and competitive matches against Cradock (0-1), Union U/13A (0-5) and Riebeek (1-2). The team improved with every game and displayed excellent determination throughout the tournament.

On the rugby field, the U/13A Rugby team produced some excellent performances, defeating Cambridge 53-0 and Muir 38-5. Their only defeat came against a strong Selborne side, going down 17-5. The festival was a fantastic experience for all involved, showcasing excellent sportsmanship, teamwork and the proud spirit of Union High School. We congratulate all players and coaches on their efforts and achievements throughout the tournament.

Well Done, Keanan!

Union High School, congratulates ๐—ž๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฎ๐—ป ๐—๐—ฎ๐—ณ๐˜๐—ฎ on an outstanding performance while representing the SA Rugby Legends Grant Khomo Iqhawe XV at the 2026 FNB U16 Grant Khomo Week, held at Kearsney College in Durban from 29 June to 3 July.

๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ฏ๐˜ข๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต ๐˜ฃ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜จ๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜บ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง ๐˜š๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ˆ๐˜ง๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ค๐˜ข’๐˜ด ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฅ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜œ16 ๐˜ณ๐˜ถ๐˜จ๐˜ฃ๐˜บ ๐˜ฑ๐˜ญ๐˜ข๐˜บ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜จ๐˜ข๐˜ท๐˜ฆ ๐˜’๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ต๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜บ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข๐˜จ๐˜ข๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฐ๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ง๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ ๐˜ข๐˜ค๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ด๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜บ.

The Iqhawe XV opened the tournament with a commanding 68-8 victory over Border Country Districts, scoring ten tries.

They followed that with a 24-22 win over the Griffons, where Keanan was named ๐— ๐—ฎ๐—ป ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐— ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฐ๐—ต.

Playing at flyhalf, he kicked three goals, including the penalty that secured victory in the closing moments. The Iqhawe XV had trailed 22-14 before fighting their way back, with a late try setting up Keanan’s match-winning kick.

They finished the week with a 23-20 victory over Namibia, completing an unbeaten tournament with three wins from three matches.

Being selected for the SA Rugby Legends Grant Khomo Iqhawe XV is recognition of a player’s potential. Being named Man of the Match at one of South Africa’s premier schoolboy rugby tournaments reflects the quality of Keanan’s performance when it mattered most.

๐˜’๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ’๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข ๐˜ด๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ค๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง ๐˜ฑ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜œ๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜๐˜ช๐˜จ๐˜ฉ ๐˜š๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ญ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜จ๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ถ๐˜ญ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฎ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฑ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ด๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐ๐˜ญ, ๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ฑ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ท๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ค๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜๐˜ฒ๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜Ÿ๐˜ ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ด๐˜ฌ๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ญ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜บ.

Junior Hockey – Nika Coertzen Hockey Festival

๐—ข๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐˜†๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ด ๐—จ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ถ๐˜๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—ฎ๐—น๐˜„๐—ฎ๐˜†๐˜€ ๐—ฏ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐—ป ๐—ธ๐—ป๐—ผ๐˜„๐—ป ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐—ฝ๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ฎ๐—ฏ๐—ผ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ถ๐—ฟ ๐˜„๐—ฒ๐—ถ๐—ด๐—ต๐˜ and this weekend our U13A hockey girls once again proved exactly what that means.

Competing at the ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฒ ๐—ก๐—ถ๐—ธ๐—ฎ ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜๐˜‡๐—ฒ๐—ป ๐—›๐—ผ๐—ฐ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—™๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฎ๐—น, hosted by Eunice Primary School in Bloemfontein, the team emerged as the winners of the Plate Final after producing a remarkable series of performances against strong opposition from across the country.

Along the way, ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ป ๐˜ƒ๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐˜๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€, one draw and just a single narrow defeat, finishing the tournament in outstanding fashion and proudly bringing the Plate title back to Graaff-Reinet.

๐—ช๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐—บ๐—ฎ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ถ๐—ฟ ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜ ๐—ฒ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ป ๐—บ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—ถ๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐—น๐—ถ๐—ฏ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—บ๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—ณ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ.

Of the schools that Union defeated or drew against during the festival, four boast senior first-team programmes currently ranked among the top 20 in South Africa – ๐—ฎ ๐˜๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜๐—ฎ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜ ๐˜๐—ผ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—พ๐˜‚๐—ฎ๐—น๐—ถ๐˜๐˜† ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐—ต๐—ผ๐—ฐ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—ด๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐—น๐˜€ ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐—บ๐—ฒ ๐˜‚๐—ฝ ๐—ฎ๐—ด๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ป๐˜€๐˜ and the determination with which they competed.

The tournament began with a hard-fought 1-0 loss to Brescia House School before the girls bounced back with a 1-0 victory over Durban Girlsโ€™ Primary, courtesy of a goal from ๐—ง๐—ฎ๐˜†๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐—๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ผ๐—ฏ๐˜€.

A goalless draw followed against Laerskool Garsfontein before Union found their rhythm with a 2-0 win over Truida Kestell Primary, with ๐—ง๐—ฎ๐˜†๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฟ and ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐˜€๐—ฎ ๐— ๐—ฐ๐—˜๐˜„๐—ฎ๐—ป finding the back of the net.

Further victories followed against Laerskool Fichardtspark (1-0), St Maryโ€™s School, Waverley (1-0) and Kenmare Primary School (2-0), with ๐—ง๐—ฎ๐˜†๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฟ continuing her excellent goalscoring form and ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐˜€๐—ฎ adding another goal to her tally.

The team then defeated DSG, Makhanda, thanks to a goal from ๐—ญ๐—ผ๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—•๐˜‚๐˜†๐˜€ before rounding off a memorable weekend with another 1-0 victory over St Maryโ€™s, Kloof in the Plate Final, where ๐—ญ๐—ผ๐—ฒ๐˜† once again scored the decisive goal.

Congratulations must go to our goalscorers whose finishing played an important role throughout the festival. ๐—˜๐—พ๐˜‚๐—ฎ๐—น๐—น๐˜† ๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜ƒ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐—ฝ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐˜€๐—ฒ, ๐—ต๐—ผ๐˜„๐—ฒ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, ๐—ถ๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐˜€๐—พ๐˜‚๐—ฎ๐—ฑ, whose teamwork and resilience carried them through nine demanding matches.

Special mention must also be made of the players who earned ๐—ฃ๐—Ÿ๐—”๐—ฌ๐—˜๐—ฅ ๐—ข๐—™ ๐—ง๐—›๐—˜ ๐— ๐—”๐—ง๐—–๐—› honours during the tournament: ๐—˜๐—บ๐—บ๐—ฎ ๐—•๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐—ด๐—ฒ๐—ฟ (three matches), ๐—›๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ฎ๐—ต ๐˜ƒ๐—ฎ๐—ป ๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ ๐—ช๐—ฎ๐—น๐˜ (two matches), ๐—ง๐—ถ๐˜†๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฎ๐—ต ๐—”๐—ฏ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ, ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎ๐˜†๐—น๐—ฎ ๐—ข๐˜๐˜, ๐—–๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—น๐—ถ๐—ฒ ๐—š๐—ฒ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ด๐—ฒ and ๐—–๐—ฎ๐˜†๐—น๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—•๐—ฟ๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ฒ๐˜๐˜๐—ฒ.

Their individual performances reflected the spirit and determination shown by the entire group.

We are incredibly proud of these young hockey players and their coach. ๐—ช๐—ฒ๐—น๐—น ๐—ฑ๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ฒ, ๐—ด๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐—น๐˜€, ๐—ผ๐—ป ๐—ฎ ๐˜„๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ณ๐˜‚๐—น ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜.

Congratulations to Union High Schoolโ€™s U13A hockey coach, ๐—œ๐—ป๐—ฎ ๐—•๐—ผ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฎ, who was announced as the ๐—–๐—ผ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ต ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ง๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐—ป๐—ฎ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜ at the 2026 Nika Coertzen Hockey Festival, hosted this weekend in Bloemfontein.

This special recognition is a reflection of the time, dedication and care that Ina invests in her players and we could not be prouder of this well-deserved achievement.